MLB.com Twins beat reporter Rhett Bollinger keeps you up to date on all Twins news

Day 1 updates from Terry Ryan

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Twins general manager Terry Ryan met with the media on the first day of the Winter Meetings, and said he’s reached out to every free-agent starting pitcher on the market.

He admitted that some options are more realistic than others, which indicates the club isn’t likely to spend top dollar on pitchers such as Zack Greinke or Anibal Sanchez.

The Twins have instead been linked to more affordable starters such as Brett Myers, Joe Blanton, Kevin Correia, Francisco Liriano and John Lannan.

I’ll have the full story up on the site on Twinsbaseball.com later tonight but here are a few nuggets from Ryan’s media session:

Aside from starting pitching help, Ryan said he also hopes to acquire a third baseman to give Trevor Plouffe some competition. He said there’s even a chance they could acquire a third baseman before the Winter Meetings are over on Thursday.

Ryan added that he doesn’t plan to add any middle infield help from the free-agent market, as both spots will be up for grabs with Jamey Carroll, Pedro Florimon, Brian Dozier and Eduardo Escobar competing for those positions.

Ryan said the same about right field, as Chris Parmelee is the frontrunner to take over there with Ben Revere shifting to center field in Span’s absence. Ryan Doumit and Darin Mastroianni are also expected to see time in right field.

Both Joe Mauer (USA) and Justin Morneau (Canada) are slated to participate in the World Baseball Classic. But Liam Hendriks (Australia) is out, as he had his elbow scoped in early November.

The Twins are expected to take a player in Thursday’s Rule 5 Draft. Minnesota has the No. 4 pick.

Ryan said he doesn’t know where Alex Meyer, who was acquired in the trade that sent Denard Span to the Nationals, will start the year. He’s likely to open up in Double-A after ending last year in Class A Advanced but Ryan said it’s not guaranteed. He did add the club has had interest in him since the 2011 First-Year Player Draft, when he was selected as the No. 23 overall pick, and also had interest in him before the Trade Deadline.

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